


Earning His Keep

by hunters_retreat



Category: Supernatural RPF
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Jensen takes care of Jared, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-12-29
Updated: 2008-12-29
Packaged: 2018-05-04 15:44:40
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,180
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5339618
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hunters_retreat/pseuds/hunters_retreat
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Something has been bothering Jared all day.  When Kripke tells Jensen to get Jared settled he sets about doing it.  Only how do you do that when you know the problem and don't have a clue what to do about it?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Earning His Keep

 

Jensen cringed as he looked back at the door closing behind him. He hated this crap. He hated postponing a shoot because the chemistry with Sam and Dean was so far off tonight. He hated Kripke calling him aside to talk to him about it, hated being told to get his co-star under control. What he hated even more though, was knowing what was wrong with Jared and not being able to do a damn thing about it. 

 

He cupped his hands and brought them to his lips, blowing on them to get warm. He didn’t have his gloves on because he’d left them in his trailer and he was already cold. There were days when he hated being in Vancouver. Alright, well he didn’t hate Vancouver. He just… he hated today really and that was all there was to it.

 

He went to his trailer and got rid of Dean’s clothes, shrugged off the rest of his attitude and made his way to Jared’s trailer. He knocked but didn’t get an answer so he went in anyway only to find it empty. He swore loudly for a few minutes then went back into the cold and found his car. He knew where Jared was so he tried to calm himself down but it didn’t really help. Knowing he was at home and alone, that he chose to be there by himself when he should have waited for Jensen to ride back with him, just made it that much more obvious how much Jared was hurting and how Jensen still didn’t have a clue how to fix it.

 

He took a couple deep breaths as he pulled into the garage. He had to be the calm one because Jared was out of control. It wouldn’t be so bad if he was the one that was out of it. Everyone was willing to give him leeway on his bad days, and to be honest, with Dean in his head he had more than his share of them. Jared though was the energizer bunny of the crew. When something was off with Jared everyone lost energy and somehow it was up to Jensen to make it all better, to recharge Jared’s batteries. He wasn’t sure how he was supposed to do it this time, but he knew he had to find a way to get Jared back to his normal self. If they put the show any further back he’d never forgive himself and Jensen couldn’t let him deal with that on top of everything else.

 

He opened the door that connected the garage to the house and walked in, setting his keys on the side table. The dogs were sitting under the kitchen table, staring forlornly at Jensen and he knew it wasn’t a good sign. The dogs normally rushed him when he walked in the door but they were obviously affected by Jared’s mood. He walked into the living room and found Jared on the couch, legs tucked up beside him and remote in hand, flipping20through the channels so fast he couldn’t possibly be seeing them. He took a deep breath and dropped his jacket on the floor, not bothering to put it up just then.  


 

Walking around the couch, he pushed Jared’s feet off so he could sit beside him. Jared grunted but didn’t say anything about it. When Jensen reached his hand out and put it under the hem of Jared’s tee-shirt he jumped up, pushed Jensen away. “What the hell Jensen? Your hands are freezing!”

 

“Thus I was trying to warm them.”

 

“Get a pair of gloves.”

 

“I like you better.”

 

“Yeah, well maybe I’m tired of being whatever you need me to be in the moment Jensen.”

 

Jensen took another deep breath. It wasn’t really Jared talking. He was lashing out, something Jensen knew well enough. It didn’t happen often, but when it did, the closer to Jared you were the worse it got. He needed to find a way to stop it before it got worse.

 

“You’re right Jared. I wasn’t thinking. I’m sorry.” He said, holding his hands out in a peace gesture.  


 

Jared gave a little huff but went back to sitting on the couch. “Whatever Jen. Just let me watch TV in peace, alright?”

 

“Yeah, sure.” He said, rubbing his hands together for warmth and to keep them from touching Jared of their own accord. He didn’t know how to say it, how to bring it up that wouldn’t set Jared off again. God knew he needed to get it out though, needed to work through whatever pain it was that he was holding so tight too. 

 

Jared continued the channel surfing for a few more minutes then shut the tv off before throwing the remote into the chair with disgust. “Remind me why I even own that damn thing.”

 

“The game.”

 

“You mean all the games we miss because we’re too busy working to be home for?”

 

He took a deep breath and before he could think better of it, said the words he’d been dieing to say all day.

 

“Jared, she’s okay.”

 

Jared stood quickly as he turned his gaze on Jensen, full of anger and something close to hate that shocked Jensen to the core. “I know she’s okay Jensen. That’s not the point.”

 

“Then what is the point Jared?” He asked, trying to keep his voice steady against that gaze.  


 

“I should have…”  


 

He stopped and Jensen realized that whatever Jared was throwing at him was really directed inward. Realizing that Jared was that upset with himself made him want to reach out and make him see just how wonderful he was.  


 

“Two days Jen.” He said, looking away. “Two days and I didn’t know because I was too busy on set and with you to return the goddamn phone call.”  


 

“Jesus Jared…” He said, on his feet before he could stop himself, pulling Jared into his arms. “Don’t do this to yourself man. It’s not your fault.”  


 

And suddenly he had 6’5” of trembling Jared in his hands and he figured he just might have done something right finally. “I told her… I’d always be there and the first time… the very first time she needs me…”

 

“Jared, I’m sorry. I know how much she means to you man. So does she.”

 

Jared’s head was resting on his shoulder and he was shaking it. “Always does, you know. That part was never the problem.” His voice was shaking and Jensen knows him well enough to understand emotional overload when it’s about to hit.  


 

“I know Jared and after shooting tomorrow you’ll fly up to LA to see Sandy and make sure she’s really okay with your own two eyes.” Jared’s head moved against his shoulder, nodding but he doesn’t seem to be able to talk just yet.

 

He rubs his back for a few minutes, trying to get him to relax. Jared can’t yet though and Jensen knows when he’s like this it takes a while to climb back into his own skin so he decides it’s time to take care of Jared.  


 

“Come on.” He said, pulling away from the embrace and taking Jared by the hand. Jared isn’t looking at him, just at his feet as he lets Jensen pull him through the house and into the master bedroom. He doesn’t let go of Jared as he uses one hand to get the bath running. The water is warm and just this side of too hot for Jensen but Jared loves water hot enough to turn your skin slightly red so he doesn’t turn the cold on higher.  


 

He pulls Jared back into the bedroom them, letting go of his hand and he starts working on the buttons of his shirt. There are only a few done so he gets it off and down his arms in no time. “Arms up.” He says then, pulling the hem of his tee-shirt up and over Jared’s arms. The clothes are left in a pile as Jensen’s hand trails across Jared’s shoulder, down his chest, and rests on the top of his belt buckle for just a minute. Neither of them say anything but he hears Jared let out a small sigh and he takes it for the encouragement that it is and he undoes the buckle, pulling the belt loose and stripping Jared of the rest of his clothes. 

 

He gets Jared into the tub and pulls a washcloth out and gets it wet, squeezing the hot water out on Jared’s shoulders. Jared just closes h is eyes and leans back, finally letting Jensen do this. He soaps the cloth up then and begins working circles into Jared’s chest. He pulls one leg up and lathers it up before setting it back in the water, then grabs for Jared’s other leg, doing the same. “Lean forward Jared.” He said, his voice soft and calm and trying not to disrupt the momentary tranquility. He doesn’t even open his eyes, but sits forward, pulling his knees up to his chest and leans over them. Jensen works the washcloth across the muscled plain of flesh and feels Jared relaxing just a little more.

 

“Come in with?” It’s the most Jared can say right now and Jensen is surprised he’s able to say that much so he set the washcloth aside and stripped down quickly. Thankfully Jared’s tub is almost a small pool and when Jensen leans back against the tub, he can pull Jared’s back to his chest and Jared doesn’t fight in the slightest. He takes the washcloth in hand again and works the warm water over his shoulders and chest, his other hand just holding him close.  


 

He's not sure how long they stay in, but it’s starting to cool down and he has another idea to held Jared come out of this. The tension is still there, the guilt that he’s holding onto and there’s only so much Jensen can do for that. He’s still got a few tricks up his sleeve though.  


 

“Come on Jay.” He pushed slightly, standing up behind Jared and getting out of the tub and wrapping a towel around his waist before he turned back and held a hand out to help Jared. He took it without a word and the silence said just about as much as his body language. Jared wasn’t normally this quiet and he hated to see him this way now.  


 

He grabbed another towel and rubbed gently at Jared’s skin, hoping the touch would sooth as well as dry him. When he was dry Jensen dropped the towel and pushed Jared towards the bed. When Jared sat on the bed, Jensen pushed him down. “On your stomach Jay.” He said over his shoulder as he went back to the bathroom to grab a bottle of lotion he kept i n there.  


 

Jared was watching him when he came back in and even that small amount of interest was an improvement. He got on the bed, then straddled Jared’s hips as he opened the lotion and poured a fair amount onto his hands. He rubbed it in a minute, letting his hands warm it up a bit, then reached up and began working on Jared’s back. First he just let his hands rub the lotion in small circles over his skin, getting him to relax into the touch.  


 

He added a little more lotion to his hands and began letting his fingers dig into Jared’s shoulders. There were knots under his fingers and he worked diligently, carefully working and rubbing at each until he felt the muscles relax under him. He kept his strokes firm and strong across Jared’s back and shoulders, then let his fingers settle around Jared’s neck, his thumbs working at the nape.  


 

Jared moaned under him and it was almost too much, having a warm, pliant, and naked Jared under him. But he wasn’t doing this for that and he just wanted to get Jared t o open up. He bit his own lip and to keep from moaning himself when he felt Jared shifting underneath him. He did let himself run his fingers through Jared’s hair though, letting his fingers run through the brown mop of hair and pull lightly. 

 

“Jen…”  


 

He knew the tone and he felt his blood pooling low and heavy. “Yeah Jared?” He asked.

 

“Let me up Jensen.”  


 

Jensen moved, letting Jared turn and get up. Jared crawled under the covers and pulled back the other side for him. He got in next to him and while he was ready for a night with Jared curled up against him, what he got was an armful of Jared as he licked his way into Jensen’s mouth.  


 

Jensen moaned into the kiss, letting Jared in as deep as he wanted. He was never good at denying Jared much of anything and if he needed physical comfort along with everything else, he was willing. More than willing. He let his hands roam, one working it’s way down the smooth skin and the other was buried in Jared’s hair again. Jared kissed him deeper and he felt the sweet roll of Jared’s hips as he pressed his hardness against Jensen’s thigh.  


 

Jensen pulled away from Jared’s lips and pushed back against his shoulder gently. “Just let me Jared.” He said, shifting his body to cover Jared’s.

 

“Yeah Jen, yeah.”  


 

He leaned down, letting his lips graze across Jared’s cheek, his tongue sliding out to touch as he came down his neck and reached the pulse point. Jared’s hands wrapped around Jensen’s shoulders, fingers digging in to hold him tight. He smiled into the touch and he knew that Jared could feel it in his skin. He kissed and mouthed his way down his stomach, stopping momentarily to lick and suck at his nipples before going for his navel. When he bites down slightly at the soft flesh above the hipbone, Jared almost bucks him off as he arches up so high.  


 

“Bastard!” Jared’s eyes show anything but anger now though, just lust and heat and want so bad he can taste it.  


 

Jensen smiles up at him and he doesn’t look away as he lets his mouth trail lower, finally reaching his cock. He takes the base of it in one hand and strokes lightly as he licks around the head, feeling Jared trembling under him. He opens his mouth and sucks the head in, continuing to play, letting his tongue move around and into the slit. Jared’s pretty far gone already and Jensen knows he’s not really going to have to do much so he stops with the teasing and begins working his way down Jared’s cock. He sucks and licks and uses his hands, stroking him and drifting down further to play softly with his balls. Gentle touches that are meant to make him lose control completely. It works and before he realizes it, he feels Jared stiffening under him, his hips fucking up into Jensen’s mouth and his hands on the back of Jensen’s head, holding him there. He gives Jared his silent wish and lets him pump into his mouth until he hears the chocked sound that Jared makes right before he comes. He sucks harder then, swallowing him down as he milks Jared through his orgasm.  


 

When Jared is nothing more than a trembling mass, he crawls up his body and kisses him deeply. He feels Jared’s hand moving to his own cock, but Jensen grabs it, entwining their fingers as he settles into the mattress and pulls Jared into him.

 

“Jen…”

 

“Just let me hold you tonight Jay, come on.”

 

“When did you get so girly?” Jared asked even as he settled against him, head on Jensen’s chest and his body half on top with one leg between Jensen’s and his arm thrown across his chest, fingers entwined with his.

 

“When you got so whiney.”  


 

He says the words without thinking, just a regular part of their banter but considering how the rest of the day has been he’s expecting Jared to pull away again. He’s more than a little surprise when he feels the shaking that he knows means Jared is laughing.  


 

Jared looks up at him and his eyes are sad but there’s a smile on his face and he’s laughing like it’s the funniest thing he’s ever heard and he only sees the flash of pain for a minute before he’d got Jared buried into him, shaking laughter turned into sobbing.  


 

He’s not sure what it’s for really, if it’s because of the guilt that he wasn’t in touch with Sandy when she’d been in the car accident and in the hospital or if it’s regret that he’s here with him and not there with her. Jensen doesn’t like to think about it. They don’t talk about it, don’t talk about whatever it was this thing between them that broke Jared and Sandy up because he’s too afraid Jared will tell him it was all about him and he’s too afraid he won’t, that it will be something Sandy did that she’ll repent later and ask him to come back. He knows that Jared would never do that, would never leave the person he was with for someone else like that but it doesn’t mean he doesn’t fear it anyway.  


 

He rubs circles in Jared’s arm with his one free hand and doesn’t know what else to do except to whisper “I got you Jay,” into his hair and press kissed into his forehead. It seems to help though and when Jared finally calms down, he looks up at Jensen with sleep heavy eyes.  


 

“You take good care of me, you know.” He said, his voice still thick from tears and heavy emotion.

 

“Gotta earn my keep somehow.” He says with his best grin, but it turns into a soft smile as he pulls his hand free and traces Jared’s face with his fingertips.

 

“I just… she’s alone Jen. I left her and she’s alone and there’s not a day I don’t feel glad about that because I’m here with you.”

 

Jensen nodded, understanding coming far too late but at least it was there. “Feeling good about this doesn’t mean you feel good about her being alone. If she thought you weren’t serious about staying friends she’d have never called you. She’s not that type.”

 

“I know. I just… you really don’t mind if I go check up on her?”  


 

Jensen smiled. “Do what you gotta do Jared. She’s your friend. I’ll still be here when you come home.”

 

“Promise?”

 

Jensen rolled his eyes. “Yeah Jay, I promise.”

 

“Good.” He said, eyes drifting closed as he lay his head back on Jensen’s chest. “Need some sleep now.”

 

“I noticed.”

 

“Love you Jen. Really fucking love you.”

 

He was out before Jensen could respond but he did anyway. He pulled him a little tighter and sighed heavily, burying his nose in Jared’s hair as he took a deep breath. “Love you too Jay. Always have.”

 

  


 

 

**Author's Note:**

> This is for the [](http://spn-giftxchnge.livejournal.com/profile)[spn_giftxchnge](http://spn-giftxchnge.livejournal.com/) . This was written for [](http://pignapoke.livejournal.com/profile)[pignapoke](http://pignapoke.livejournal.com/) ! The request was for J2 where something upsets Jared and Jensen takes him home and takes care of him. Hope you enjoy it!


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